Are the A-10s safe from the Air Force?

We have long written about the A-10, which I think is an amazing asset and something that is superior in its role as a CAS platform that other planes including the F-35 which the Air Force thinks should replace the old Warthog. Yes, I know, I am not a combat pilot, not a TCAP nor a grunt, but i just know a plane that can loiter in the area for hours, put bullets on target and is built within lots of damage has to be better than a supersonic plane that can only fire a cannon (when the software is working) for one burst, and that carries high precision bombs or missiles. Which, btw, the A-10 can carry some of those too.

Anyway, the Air Force wants to get rid of the A-10 saying it can’t afford both and the F-35 is the future and the A-10, while a wonderful plane, isn’t in its future. They are dumping the A-10 if you will. And it was recently reported on Stars and Stripes that one base is grounding nine of its 10 planes so that they can begin the transition. Nevermind that A-10s are making life hell for ISIS aka ISIL aka IS over in Iraq.

The Air Force says it will convert a total of 18 combat-ready A-10s fleetwide from active units and place them into “Backup-Aircraft Inventory,” or BAI, status with the possibility to convert another 18 at a later date in fiscal year 2015.

Besides the moves at D-M, the Air Force says it will mothball six A-10s at Moody Air Force Base in Georgia and three at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.

Naturally, I disagree and cite the classic phrase “Happiness is a 30mm cannon.”

Author: Andy Kravetz

Andy Kravetz has spent most of the past 16 years covering the area's legal system as well as the military. in that time, he's crawled in the mud, flown in transport planes, and written about a man prosecuted for terrorism. This blog will reflect all those interests and then some.
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